Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-03-11
GABRIEL.
By C. F. NJ.

By C. f. NJ.
Some years ago l had been a little out OF
health from confinement i'll a law Office,
and suddenly took a notion to branch out
in a new direction.
Instead of hunting up n warmer climate,
Or coddiing myself up for the winter, I put
on several heavy flannel shirts, covering
them over with Mackiuaws and joined o
lumber camp in Northern Michigan. had
never seen anything of such a life,
nor indeed of any life, save that of school
and life i'll a law Office; and from that dates
the awakening in me of a spirit of adventure,
which never died until adventure became
impossible.
l reached tho camp, n comfortable
enough place; it was of board, covered
with bouehs of evergreen, and we had beds
of bouehs piled up, with blankets, COM
fortables. and skins to keep US warm.
There we're only our men in our camp
three besides myself. Two were common
fellows enough. Jack Smith and Ray Lee:
the other was different. He was o man of
near SO, and a sort Of q giant-tall, broad
shouldered, and strong-armed. There was
something peculiar about the man, some-
thing dark and gloomy in his face, and
something dark and gloomy in his manner.
never saw him smile but once that win
ter, and then I'd rather not have seen it. He
would sometimes take a land at cards with
US of IN evening, but he oftener lay and
smoked, while we played cut-throat euchre,
as we called our t~hree-handed game. He
never sang Or told a story, or joined in any
of our rather rude sports. He worked like
a tiger oil day, then at night all he seemed
to wish TO do was to lie down and sob with
his pipe in his mouth. Once in a great
while Ae would 20 into one of the other
camps OF an evening. but not often. 1t
was on n Of these infrequent occasions
that I asked some questions about him.
His name was Gabriel Dessau, and he
was o descendent Of the Acadians. ooh,
don't o know about him." asked Ray
Lee. sWe call him gloomy Gabe. The
poor fellows been badly cut up"
Ray got up, went to the door of the camp
and locked out to he sure that Gabriel
Dessau. Or Gloomy Gabe, had gone away;
then he came back, and told me the mans
story.
"Gabe Dessau," he began, FUSED
to be a different sort of man.
and [ remember the time when
he was the life of our camp.
He was full of dry jokes, and could sing a
fair song in Tint charming patois of his,
and play poker as we'll as the best. IL
those days Gabe had a daughter down the
river. the only thing ho had in the world,
and q pretty girl she was. l never saw
Gabe's wife, who died when the girl wa
born: but Gabrielle must nave looked like
her. She was one of those happy, laugh
ing. affectionate little things that at the
same time can cry MS easily as they can
laugh. A baby, Gabe used to call her; and
he was rs tender Of her as if she had been
a baby. [ tell you lie never made her CRY
much. Everything he could get for her,
he got: and he was that proud of her he
thought nobody else worth looking at when
she was by.
cit would have done you good to see
them together, she dancing around him, O,
hanging On his arm, her face all smiles and
dimples. and her black hair hanging in
curls down her neck. They boarded, since
there were but two of them; and Gabe
didn't want Gabrielle to have any care.
Besides. she was going to school, and he
always said that he was going to give her
the education Of a lady. They lived as
happily as CLANS till Gabrielle was IS years
old. Then young Kent Williams went to
board in the house with them"
"Kent Williams!" I said. @Why, is that
"Yee," Ray Lee answered. cutting me
short.
@The same Kent that's up here in the
other camp. If I'd been in his place, I
would have the decency to keep out of
siiabe Dessau's sight. But Gabe don't
seem to mind him. I should think he
didn't know he is here.
eWell. Kent was a cay, vain fellow, and
he soon took a notion to Gabrielle, and she
to him. Gabe didn't like it at all. 1t was
natural that he should be jealous of any
body who should want to get his girl away;
and Kent was a dirt. But he was q hand
some fellow, and it was no use to stand in
his way. He never said that he wanted to
marry Gabrielle; but he acted that way,
and as if he meant to, and she trusted
him.
eff Gabe said anything, Kent answered
that he didn't mean to do any harm-that
he liked Gabrielle, but didn't want to enter
into any hasty engagements, and that if
Gabrielle was q mind to speak to him, he
couldn't help it. But I guess he talked in
n different strain to Gabrielle, for she stuck
to him. She vowed that she wasn't in love
with Kent, sor he with her, but that they
vera good L;o11s, and she thought it